


Wrong Side of the Woods

by okkaykate



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Drunkenness, Fantasy, M/M, No Plot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-15
Updated: 2020-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:36:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,050
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23148607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/okkaykate/pseuds/okkaykate
Summary: The first thing Youngho imagines the king to say is not his name. “Mr. Seo, you’ve come to the wrong side of the woods.” He says as he turns to him. Youngho doesn’t know how the king knows he is there. He doesn’t know how the king even knows he exists.
Relationships: Suh Youngho | Johnny/Wong Yuk Hei | Lucas
Comments: 2
Kudos: 26





	Wrong Side of the Woods

**Author's Note:**

> The summary is misleading and this really isnt as interesting as its was intended to be but basically alice in wonderland vibes and dumb oblivious men! Also there are some mentions of death and alcohol so beware! Also I can never have plot so !!

“Are you an idiot, Yang? Of course, the chicken came before the damn egg.”

“Bitch, do you think a chicken just pops up as a full blown chicken? No. Egg before chicken, Ten. Do you think humans existed and were all grown up? You think Adam and Steve just woke up as fully functional humans? No. We all still have to develop our brains and grow up and it’s been forever since we existed!”

“...It’s supposed to be Adam and Eve.” 

“Kun, shut up. Let the gays rule.”

“Yang, men suck it should be Amy and Eve or something. Also the chicken came before the egg! My argument still stands.”

“I agree.”

“Lucas! No, don’t listen to Ten! Egg first, don’t turn on me like this! Come on, Johnny, you have to be on my side! You have a brain, use it!.. Johnny? Johnny!”

Dark.

*

Youngho wakes up in a daze, lying in a field in daylight. He lives in the city. Where is he right now?

He checks his pockets for his phone or wallet or anything, but nothing. In fact, the only thing he has other than himself is dirty, grey, and baggy clothes on his body. He sighs and looks around, seeing a forest ahead. He walks towards it.  _ BUZZ _ . Youngho looks around for any flies. He catches sight of one but it zips around his head so fast and he can only swing. The buzzing is so loud in his ears.  _ BUZZ. _ Youngho sighs. “Go away.”  _ BUZZ. BUZZ.  _

“Go away!” He says, moving his arm around trying to make the bug leave. Suddenly, the buzzing stops and Youngho sighs in relief that the annoyance is gone.

“HEY!” He hears a voice and turns instantly in shock to find a small male looking at him with an annoyed expression which Youngho mirrors back.

“What?”

“You’re not from here, are you?!”

“No?” Youngho responds, unsure of what _here_ really is.

“Hm.” The man crosses his arms, pouting. “Human. You’re pretty tall for that though. You might even be as tall as the big guy!” Youngho knows he is tall, but who is this big guy? What? The other man was rather small. Well, more like very small.

“What are you supposed to be then?” He retorts.

The man rolls his eyes. “Oh my, you’re so dumb. What does it look like?” He deadpans, giving Youngho a blank stare.

Youngho squints his eyes at the man. He is short, must be at least two feet smaller than Youngho, has small little horns and big pointy ears. “A… Dwarf? An Elf? A goat?”

The man sighs heavily, facepalming. “Sicheng and Renjun would punch you so hard for saying I look like one of them. Do I have to do it again for you to realize?” The names seemed familiar, but Youngho has no idea where he is or where he’s going.

“Do what?” Why was this man suddenly so rude? So informal? His tone… Youngo has never met this man in his life

“Alright, forget it. You’re dumb, anyhow. I’m Yangyang.”

“Sheep?” Youngho asks, referring to the name.

“NO! I’m not a damn sheep! Do I  _ look _ like a sheep to you? Do I have to spell it out for you?” 

“That’s not what I meant…” Youngho tries, but Yangyang cuts him off immediately.

“I’m a FAIRY. F-A-I-R-Y. Is that so hard to piece together?”

“Um, okay, why did you have to buzz in my ear like that earlier?”

Yangyang just sighs. “You’re an actual idiot, my name is Yangyang and that’s the end of that topic.” Youngho grinned, amused by the fairy’s temper.

“Is one Yang not enough?’ 

“Oh, don’t be an asshole now, Johnny.” Yangyang says aggressively and Youngho froze, very confused.

“What?” Youngho retorts, confused out of his mind. He’s not Johnny. Who the hell is Johnny? “I’m not Johnny.”

“I’m a fairy and I know shit, now listen up unless you want to die in here.”

_ Where even is here? _ Youngho was inclined to say, but Youngho did want to survive so instead he did listen and shut up.

“There is a hierarchy here. Your best bet is to be as polite as you can. You’re a foreigner. Don’t mess with the balance. You never know who is important and who not to mess with, got it?

“You are quite rude yourself, Yangyang.” Youngho retorts with a laugh.

“You’d be surprised to know I am quite an important person. And I mean look at your clothes! You’re a newcomer, dress poorly, and have no manners! Of course you’re below me! It shouldn’t even be a question.”

“Alright then, fine, tell me how to survive.”

“Just follow the path and don't cause any trouble.” A sly smirk grew on Yangyang’s face. “And that will lead you to the king, and if you’re nice, he’ll help you go home all nicely.”

“You will encounter a lot of creatures in these woods, but if you just go on your way and don’t bother them you won’t even notice they’re there.” 

“What kind of creatures are there?” Youngho asks, mentally preparing himself for the worst.

“Why, all creatures of course.” And that’s the moment when Youngho knew he probably wouldn’t survive these woods, and yet he went into them anyway after getting a study lesson from the wonderful fairy Yangyang.

*

Youngho has walked for a while already and followed the path as instructed. He has tried not to freak himself out and just continue on the way. He is already tired as hours must have passed. He proceeds through the wood.  _ Crack. _

The trees are high and dense. Youngho wonders how high they are.  _ Crack. _

There is a whipping sound and Youngho turns his head as if to follow it. There is a dash of white and then it is gone.

Youngho gulps and stops walking, looking around. He can feel the sweat gathering against his skin in fear.

There is another dash of white and a whipping sound. Youngho slows his breathing down in an attempt to relax. He cracks his knuckles to occupy his thoughts.

He thinks of all Yangyang had advised him of. He does not recall any advice of this in the slightest. Of all the nymphs and animals the strange man told him of, Youngho cannot place which being is lurking currently. Its form is elusive and almost alike an illusion.

In a moment, Youngho no longer hears a crack. He rather hears a creak, and most notably,  _ a crunch _ .

The crunch echoes and Youngho’s eyes search for it. It is a useless attempt as it echoes throughout the entire forest as if he is on a mountain.

The harsh winds stop. Then Youngho hears a prominent  _ plop _ . He whips his head around towards the sound, and he catches sight of a half-bitten apple that rolls through the fallen copper leaves a few meters away. Youngho freezes and takes in a deep breath before raising his gaze, high up into the trees which cover the sky.

The white blob is so high up Youngho cannot even place the entity’s figure. Youngho gulps before finding his voice and carefully picking up the apple. The bite marks are slightly sharp, but relatively normal in size when compared to a human, only a slightly larger bite. The apple is otherwise normal.

He hesitates to speak. Although Yangyang told him to not bother anyone and only follow the path, he is intrigued. And truly what is the harm? No return. Youngho isn’t even really sure if there is an exit to this land. Maybe he is being tricked.

“Excuse me?” He calls as Yangyang’s words replay in his mind. 

_ There is a hierarchy here. Your best bet is to be as polite as you can. You’re a foreigner. Don’t mess with the balance.  _

The white blob doesn’t seem to move. “Would you like to finish your apple… Sir?” The formality is quite odd on Youngho’s tongue, but he supposes it’s for the best.

The blob suddenly drops down, and Youngho can finally understand the shape of what seems to be an ordinary and only quick man. He climbs down to the lowest branch in the trees swiftly and has a blank expression.

Youngho registers a pit of fear and tension collect in his chest, yet he still shakily reaches out the apple towards him. Now that Youngho can see all of him, he decides that the white blob is simply the long white shirt endorning the man’s torso almost past his knees. It is flowy and nearly silky. Youngho appreciates the material’s shine. The man has dark tan pants on as well, similarly colored to the tree bark. The man does not take the apple back.

After a moment of observing Youngho, the man grins. “The apple is rotten, sir.” His voice is softer than Johnny imagined, gentiler. Very quiet and polite. The man points to the crusty outer rim of dirt and mush around the apple.

“Ahh..” Johnny nods slowly, taken aback with his mouth wide. He is sure it wasn’t rotten a moment ago, maybe he just wasn’t thinking. He quickly tries to find a place to put down the apple. He places it on the branch of another tree using his height and tippy toes to his advantage.

Once he turns back towards the man, he hears a chuckle before the man disappears in an instant. The laugh resonates softly through the trees and Johnny stands, bewildered.

“Over here, sir!” The same man calls from behind Johnny. Johnny turns quickly and finds the man close on the branch he just placed the rotten apple on with a new fresh apple with a bite in it in his hands.

The previous apple is gone.

“Fooled you!” The man speaks with a soft grin written on his features. Once his smile relaxes, his eyes glisten as he leans forward. “Did you enjoy my trick?”

Johnny sees the innocence in his eyes of the neatly kempt magician and his smile, and Johnny nods with his own smile. “I enjoyed it.”

The trickster grins wider. “Thank you.” He takes a moment to come back to reality and he perches the branch on like a bird. “Now where are you headed to, sir?”

Johnny loses his breath for a moment as he thinks. Where was he headed to? Oh, right. “The king.” He states calmly although he is well aware that kings usually are not easy to find or talk to and he is simply a newcomer.

The magician widens his eyes, leaning back on his tree. “The king,” He whispers out, repeating the words back to himself, somehow satisfied.

Within a blink the magician has a small smile on again. “Wonderful! So you know your way?”

“Um… I’m just following this path.”

“Ah, yes, this is really the  _ only _ road that you need.”

Another laugh different from both Youngho and the man’s vibrates across the forest and the man groans. “I’m sorry, Sir, but I must go now.”

“Oh, it’s okay.” Youngho says, almost feeling sad that he’ll be alone again.

“Tell the king that I said hi.”

“Who should I say is saying hi?” Youngho asks.

The magician smiles, “Kun.” Another laugh goes across the forest and Kun groans. “But really I have to go now, until next time!” He says before darting off into the trees shouting something about a number and owning the woods.

*

Youngho sees a gate up ahead amongst the trees. It is a large black set of doors and the air smells of smoke. Here is where the road ends. The king must be here.

Youngho makes his way to the gates and finds two guards to greet him behind the doors. They open the doors for him without a word and only spare him a single glance. Youngho decides they must not want conversation. The floor is cobblestone and there is no roof. Vines and trees lurk everywhere in the structure, overcoming every part of it. It is overgrown with weeds and flowers. Youngho wonders what kind of king this is. He wonders if he is even a king at all if he lives in such messy conditions. He must be quite strange.

He passes through a few more rooms with creatures giving him quick glances or small smiles which Youngho cannot decipher. He isn’t sure why they all look at him like this. Maybe he’s walking to his death. Maybe he made a mistake and this is not the king. 

Just as he starts to doubt the path, two more people suddenly walk by his sides without a word. They each have a torch and they lead him to a new set of doors and room. These doors are wooden and seem heavy, but the two open them with ease. In an instant, Youngho analyzes the room. It is nearly like a prison. It is a square of cobblestone. Vines overcome it too on all sides of the room, but it is more lit than all the other rooms. There is also a throne and a man sitting on it. The guards bow and Youngho assumes this must be the king even before the man even looks at him.

The doors close with a loud echo and the man ahead of him begins to turn towards him in his seat,  _ his throne _ .. Youngho suddenly can’t remember why he’s here. Why he’s here to meet the king, and how this will help him he really has no idea. All he knows is that it took nearly a day to walk here and there is an important man in front of him.

The first thing Youngho imagines the king to say is not his name. “Mr. Seo, you’ve come to the wrong side of the woods.” He says as he turns to him. Youngho doesn’t know how the king knows he is there. He doesn’t know how the king even knows he exists. 

The man is elegant, rings align his fingers and shine under the burning sunlight that somehow finds its way through the spaces in between the cobblestone roof and the torch light. The rings’ beauty entrances Youngho, but the man finally stands and gathers his attention. It’s a slow ascension, almost painfully so. Different intricacies and patterns of thorns lace through his lifted hair, a crown of sorts. This man is effortless and powerful. Youngho follows the line of his body down. It winds. It’s slim, slick, sharp. He’s long and broad. He’s large. His skin somehow looks thick and sturdy yet smooth and warm. The curve and tanned skin of the expanse of the man’s chest is slightly exposed and Youngho can see the lines of black vine artwork over his chest sprawl and grow over him. He is entirely thorns. More stems and thorns lace through the velvet cloth of his robes. Where the skin of his forearm is exposed real vines encircle it comfortably and tight like his own veins. His veins are strong underneath those vines. His inner clothing is an antique white while his velvet robes are a deep, deep red. Youngho wonders if the stems, the thorns, ever pierce him. He wonders the contrast between the dark red of the king’s robes, the white of his dress, the tan aspect of his skin, against pure red of his blood.

Youngho has the curiosity of what would happen if he touched the thorns. His finger drenched in its own thick red blood, and the king watching the substance pour from the tip of his finger relentlessly while his heart pounds. His body is on fire at his own imagination.

The king is utterly beautiful.

With his heart caught in his throat, Younho finally meets the king’s eyes. He repeats the words the king has said in his brain, trying to bring himself back to the situation. The king looks at him with piercing eyes, Youngho can’t breathe. “How do you know me?” Only once the words leave his mouth is when he realizes just how rude he is being. Yangyang told him  _ not _ to be rude, yet look at what Youngho has just said to the  _ king _ . The king shouldn’t be pestered or asked such questions. He just talked back to the king. He just disrespected the king.

A part of Youngho wants to immediately drop to his knees and beg for forgiveness. He’s new. He’s never been on ‘this side of the woods’. He’s never been in any kind of these woods for that matter. 

The king tilts his head and chuckles quietly. Youngho can see it now him beheaded, pierced through the chest with a sword, or strangled by vines. He must have made a mistake. His death must be inevitable now as the king steps away from his throne of thorns and towards him. The king commands all. The king can kill a nobody in a moment. The king is powerful.

Youngho wonders how badly he really messed up, but even if he doesn’t want to admit it the king is intimidating in everything. Intimidatingly dangerous, intimidatingly attractive, intimidatingly influencing. One order and Youngho is dead.

Youngho drops to his knees now, beyond intimidated and scared, flinching down with every step the king takes to him, tears already threatening him. This is not how he expected this to go. He thought he wouldn’t mess up so easily. The people made it sound easy, just follow the path. Kun told him to tell the king he said hi, but maybe Youngho won’t be able to even say another word. “Look up.” The king commands loudly. 

A tear drops from his eyes and somehow Youngho finds it in himself to look up. The king smiles for a second before his expression is deadly once more. “Stand.”

Youngho is shaking. He doesn’t know if he has ever been more scared in his life. His breathing is audibly ragged as he stands. He already feels as if he’s been slashed a million times, his insides cut up by swords, but no one has touched him. He stands, looking straight at the king. His gaze does wander in his fear however. He looks to the crown of thorns, the markings across the king’s chest. The king smirks. Youngho wonders if the markings are everywhere on the king’s chest and abdomen, maybe even his legs. He supposes he would never know, Maybe this is who Yangyang meant when he said big guy? The king is the tallest individual he has seen here in the woods, yet the king and him are the same height. Youngho would have to make an effort to not look straight into the king’s eyes.

The king’s smile drops once more to a blank countenance as they make eye contact. Somehow taking in the king has calmed him. Thinking about who will take his life within a few minutes into meeting is somewhat relaxing. He can embrace the end he supposes. He has made a mistake, so he must die. It is almost simple. Somehow he has come to peace with what will be his untimely death. 

The king lets out a soft and hot breath before speaking. Youngho expects this to be his killing command, the last words he will hear, and his bones shake. He flinches at the breath before looking back at the king to hear them. “How can I not know you, Mr. Seo?”

Youngho does not answer. He isn’t supposed to. The king gives him a soft smile. Youngho knows he must have missed something, maybe he did something he can’t remember? Maybe he did something even worse? Maybe he will be tortured before he is killed.

The king raises his left hand towards Youngho’s face, and Youngho can only gaze at the vines wrapping his arms, the stems, and the thorns. The man laughs and slowly touches the back of Youngho’s neck. The thorns don’t touch him. _Kill me._ _Do it._ The king’s fingers are even hotter than Youngho’s own skin. The king’s gold rings are freezing against his skin though. Contrary to Youngho’s belief, the king does not kill him. He speaks. “Oh, you have made it all this way for me, Johnny. Should I go clean you up? Ten didn’t give you a hard time, did he? I told him to let you by without a fuss. I’m sure Kun handled it anyway, not without a trick though.” The king laughed cheerily. The ice of him seems to have melted. The king is only warm.

“I’m not Johnny. I’m Youngho… You don’t know me.” Youngho’s face is muddled with confusion. These names are unknown to him, except Kun, yet he thinks he understands somehow. “Kun said hi though?” Youngho feels like his brain is about to explode. 

He still flinches when the king moves his hand to the back of his head, stroking his hair. “Our sheep friend did say you were quite confused. Did you hit your head too hard?”

“Huh?” Youngho can only ask, the part where the king is stroking starts to pound, starts to hurt. He feels dizzy. He doesn’t know why such a name comes to him but he says it. “Yukhei?” Youngho feels like he’s fainting as his entire head pounds. 

Dark.

*

Johnny awakens from such a dream and just sits in a daze for a few moments wondering how the hell he went through such a damn rollercoaster of a dream. He tries to recall everything before he forgets it all, but it’s all running away from him. All he can think of is a crazy mixture of voices and blurred images. His head also hurts like hell.

Johnny rarely dreams, or at least he rarely remembers having any. He walks out from his bedroom slowly, feeling slightly dizzy. He walks into the kitchen section of his apartment and finds his roommate on his phone as the toaster pops. His roommate jumps with the pop, nearly dropping his phone in the sink, finally noticing Johnny. His cheeks turn pink in embarrassment, picking up his phone and the toast. The toast is extremely burnt. Johnny glances at the setting on the toaster and sees it at the highest one. His best friend looks at him with a stupid smile and a small shrug, glancing at his charchol toast and taking a big bite before immediately going to spit it out. He leans on the counter and over into the trash can in a white tank top and checkered boxers. His back faces Johnny. Johnny blinks and envisions vines along his back and arms. He thinks of glinting rings and a white man flashing through the trees. His roommate spits out the bite of toast he took and throws out the rest of the toast and instead grabs an apple. Johnny then sees pointy ears and a rotten apple with a sharp bite out of it. Johnny recalls the idea of vines against his skin, his blood pulsing and that icy glare. 

“Hey, Johnny! How are you feeling? You fell down pretty hard last night coming up the stairs and then just passed out. I was pretty worried.” What he sees in front of him now is nothing like an icy glare. It is a goofy smile with apple pieces in its teeth. 

“ _Oh_ ,” Johnny begins, unaware of how to respond considering the dream he has just experienced. “I’m fine. I think I was just tired.” He laughs slightly, giving his friend a small smile.

“I carried you all the way up here and then they just ditched me! Kun made you some hangover soup today though.” Johnny could only laugh again.

“I’ll tell him thanks.” He says, grabbing the soup from the refrigerator. 

“Do you want me to make you coffee?” He asks with the most adorable smile.

Johnny smiles back. “Yes, please.” While Lucas busies himself with the coffee, Johnny contemplates his sanity. Then, Lucas turns to him with the coffee, and Johnny only contemplates his life harder with how beautiful Lucas looks after a drunken night out. How beautiful Lucas looks all the time. How beautiful Lucas looked as a king.  _ Oh Wong Yukhei _ , Johnny thinks fondly, wondering how drunk he still is,  _ how messed up I am for you. _

**Author's Note:**

> Please comment, kudos, anything! Thank you for making it this far in that mess! I hope you enjoyed it because it was fun to write something because I’ve been busy and in a block! (Sorta) and I started this as a small idea in September and it isnt what I thought it would be but it’s here.


End file.
